Although he never says anything on the show, Gogglebox's Jay Makin was conspicuous by his absence in last night's edition of the C4 show.
After viewers had seen the regulars giving their verdict on programmes such as Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway and Louis Theroux: Transgender Kids, they were left wondering where the non-speaking contributor was.
Jay was regularly seen on the show watching telly with his girlfriend Eve Woerdenweber, and her parents Viv and Ralf, but while they gave their opinions on the previous week's TV he remained mute.
Last month, however, Jay and Eve split up, and it was reported that he was desperate to leave the show following the break-up.
So in last night's episode of the weekly show, which also features favourites including June and Leon from Liverpool and gay friends Christopher and Stephen from Brighton, Eve was seen reclining on the sofa where jay normally sits.
This morning, according to Mirror Online, C4 has announced that Jay has left the show. The website's insider is quoted as saying, "It’s with great regret that Silent Jay is no longer in this series of Gogglebox. He has been an excellent contributor to Gogglebox, and we are very grateful for all he has given to the show."
Fans loved Jay's emotionless face and wordless appearances so much that it became a running joke with the camera crew who edited out anything he said whenever he decided to chip in.
Viv, who runs a shop and tattoo studio with tattoo artist Eve in Birkenhead, says that Jay is just as quiet in real life as he was on screen…
“He’s not a very vocal person,” she says. “He tends to watch the TV in his own little world. I think he was a bit camera shy on the first couple of episodes and didn’t say anything, then people caught on, so now I think he thinks he might as well stick with it.”
